1. Field of the Invention
The various embodiments described herein relate generally to a latch apparatus and more particularly to a latch apparatus for a hot swappable device.
2. Description of the Related Art
A hot swappable device is a device that is removable during operation in a computer or peripheral systems environment. Hot swappable devices are important in a server level system or above. Using hot swappable devices, system capability can be expanded without interrupting the operation of the system.
The hot swappable devices used in a server may be a hot swappable power device, a hot swappable hard disk, a hot swappable optical disk drive (ODD), a hot swappable battery, a hot swappable fan, or a combination thereof. Hot swappable devices usually are mounted on a front end or a back end of the server so that they can be hot swappable from the front end or the back end. Also, handles and latches usually are mounted on the hot swappable devices.
Fan devices are widely used in current electronic devices. Fans are especially important for a high level server, as the heat dissipation criteria are much higher. Accordingly, a plurality of fans are used in a high level server to address the generated heat. These fans are usually hot swappable. Thus, if one or more of the fans do not work, the user need not shut down the system but rather can directly replace the affected fans without interrupting system operation.
In the trend of smaller electronic device sizes, there are different ways of arranging hot swappable devices. For example, a single hot swappable device may be installed in the inner space of an electronic device. Alternatively, a first hot swappable device may be installed in the inner space of the electronic device, and a second hot swappable device may be mounted in front of the first hot swappable device. For example, after a hot swappable hard disk is installed in a server through a slot on the front end, a hot swappable fan may be installed between the hot swappable hard disk and the slot entrance.
Regarding the above arrangement involving two hot swappable devices, since the hot swappable devices are installed in an inner space of the electronic device, and since one hot swappable device is installed in front of another, conventional removal of the hot swappable devices is rather difficult. In accordance with the above arrangement, a second hot swappable device may be installed in front of a first hot swappable device inside a smaller server (such as a 1-U server or a 2-U server), and thus conventionally a user must insert one or more fingers into the inner space of the server to remove the hot swappable devices, thus exposing himself to potential injury. Thus, a latch apparatus that allows easy removal of the hot swappable devices is desired.